Category Archives: Inspiration

Hello, Little Bubbles, and the Comfy KAL!

We’re all excited about the release of our Little Bubbles Baby Set , but I think I’m a little bit extra excited, because this was my first big design project here at Knit Picks, and I’ve been holding my tongue about it until now! But I finally can talk about it, and as this little movie will show, once given the opportunity, I talked, and talked and talked. And the amazing thing is; I have even more, that I forgot to say! Like, that the sweater patterns come with two sleeve options! And, how cool would it be to knit the pattern for an older child (or an adult!) in Comfy worsted? I can’t believe I forgot to say all this stuff!? But, that’s what the knitalongs are for, right? For more Little Bubbles and Comfy chatter, check out the Comfy KAL, just started ...

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Quick Knit

Wow, the Fetching Mitts were super fast to knit, and the City Tweed HW makes them so warm! I made the cabled sections on these a little longer than the pattern calls for because I like mitts that cover more of my arm and fingers. Even so, these only used 85 grams of yarn out of the 100 gram ball, so they’re a one-skein project! They’d make a great Christmas gift (but I’m going to keep these for myself). <

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Knitting on the go again

Last weekend I went on a 40 mile lodge to lodge hike with my parents along the Rogue River in Oregon. I was carrying everything I needed for the hike on my back, so I was very conscience of weight and bulk. Of course though, I had to bring knitting. The picture is of me and my dad. So I brought 3 balls of comfy from my stash and tested some hand towel/kitchen towel designs I am considering. I had the three balls, one fixed circular needle and a xerox copy of a feather and fan pattern all in a zip loc bag and it all weighed less than my zip loc bag that contained my toothbrush and mini deodorant. The hike was great, a truly perfect weekend, and in the evenings after dinner I got quite a bit of knitting done. ...

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Meet Kate!

Some of you may already know the newest member of the Knit Picks’ marketing department because Kate used to work in customer service. We’re very excited that she’s decided to join our team as the new marketing assistant. Look for blog updates and KAL’s from Kate coming soon!! If you’re on Twitter, you can follow Kate at KP_Kate. <

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Making Progress on my City Tweed Project!

Here’s what I have done so far on my project for the City Tweed! KAL! I’m knitting Veronik Avery’s Oblique in the Heavy Worsted City Tweed, Jaquard colorway. There’s always been a lot of debate, as far as I can tell, over whether highly textured patterns demand a smooth, plain yarn, or whether they can work with tweeds, or other more rustic yarns. I personally feel that heathers and tweeds add a really attractive depth to textured stitch patterns. However, I’m used to doing cable work with tweed, and this is my first time attempting lace with a thick, tweedy yarn. I must say, I am enjoying it a lot, and looking forward to blocking when the lace pattern will open up just a teensy bit more. I’m estimating that I’m 15 to 20 percent done with the knitting at this point, and I’d better get ...

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City Tweed HW Fetching Mitts

It seems like everyone else in the office is knitting with City Tweed, and I wasn’t, so I felt left out! Friday, I grabbed a couple balls of City Tweed HW (color – Lemon Curd) and printed off the knitty.com pattern for the Fetching Mitts. I wasn’t ready to start an entire sweater, but these days of fickle spring weather make a pair of fingerless mitts still really useful. Once I started knitting with the City Tweed, it was really hard to stop! I’m lots farther along than this photo, but haven’t had a chance to take a more recent photo – because I can’t seem to put the needles down….. Also, as a die-hard magic looper, this project is a bit different for me. I decided to use DPNs because the cables go different directions on the two hands, and I thought I might get confused if ...

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City Tweed FO

I finished my City Tweed sweater last week, and it was hard to wait for it to finish drying. I wanted to wear it right away! I had wanted to knit “Salina” (Ravelry link) from Vintage Knits (Ravelry link) for ages, but I hadn’t found quite the right yarn that was still within budget. I’m a sucker for basic pullovers with clever details, and I really liked the split neck, tailored collar, and the seed stitch edgings. I love neutral colors (to the point that it’s become a joke in the office), and I picked out Tabby in City Tweed DK. It’s a gently warm nut brown, and some of the fibers in the heather look almost copper in the sunlight. The neutral tweedy nebs are plentiful, and they stayed put in the yarn while I knit (out of 10 ...

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Stunningly beautiful short row heel!

I confess that I have not ever been happy with short row heels on socks. I love the concept but the execution left a lot to be desired. Well, it left a row of tiny holes going up the heel no matter how carefully I wrapped. Thanks to my podcast interview of Cookie A. and reading through her book, Sock Innovation, I have been intrigued by her mathematical mind. I suspected that her designs would be things of analytical beauty. Thanks to the Sock Innovation KAL, I’m happily exploring Cookie’s sock patterns. I finished the short-row heel on my Lindsay Sock and it is absolutely fantastic!!! So easy! I am back to loving this heel style. No issues of picking up heel flap stitches and shaping a gusset. Isn’t it a lovely thing? ...

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Sheldon + free patterns= :)

I don’t think it’s a big secret that Sheldon is my favorite turtle ever. Obviously, I’m not the only one who is enamored with the little guy, our kits for his career outfits and animal costumes sold out much faster than we’d anticipated! To keep up with the demand, we’ve now released all 9 of the patterns for Sheldon’s costumes as free downloads. You can easily access all 9 here, or you can look for them on the free patterns page on KnitPicks.com. Happy knitting! <

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I finished my Montavilla Market Tote.

Here’s a pic–the project looks nicer than my gloomy pic shows Actually I finished it this weekend while watching the scariest movie I’ve ever seen, “30 Days of Night” about vampires that attack an Alaska town in winter. I was alone and it was dark and I was gripping my needles with all my might. It’s quite a bit smaller than the original tote pattern called for because, well, I’m short. I made the the body about 10 inches instead of 12, and I made the handles shorter. And, in the spirit of full disclosure, I accidentally knit it wrong side out–the bottom panel has the “wrong side” on the outside of the bag, but I’m ok with it. I’m very, very happy with it. I promptly threw it on the floor in the back seat of my truck, so I’ll always have it when i go ...

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